gregb
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Purchased Private Street - In San Francisco
- Thread starter Riick
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Elliott
Elite Member
- Joined
- Apr 23, 2002
- Professional Status
- Certified General Appraiser
- State
- Oregon
From the article:
"But Michael Cheng and Tina Lam insist they are the victims of class warfare, a striving middle class couple vilified by the rarefied because they are outsiders — from the sprawling flatlands of San Jose, no less.
“They just didn’t see us as worthy of being part of that neighborhood,” said Cheng, 40, a Taiwanese immigrant who grew up selling toys and trinkets at the San Jose Flea Market with his father. It’s as though they were saying, “Oh, you guys are from the South Bay. You’re not from the most prestigious neighborhood in San Francisco, so we don’t want you here.”
It was the second time that the Presidio Terrace homeowners association failed to pay taxes on the parcel over the decades. This time, its members explained that they had changed accountants but the tax bill was being sent to an old address. As for the couple, although they didn’t want to sell, they said they would for $1 million, then refused a $200,000 offer.
After the board meeting this week, Supervisor Mark Farrell called the couple “out-of-town speculators … attempting to extort San Francisco residents that I represent into a quick $1 million payday.”
Not so, say Cheng and Lam, who insist they are still reeling from the maelstrom of international attention — and feel they have been unfairly demonized.“It’s just pride of ownership for me, and pretty much having the most exclusive and now most famous street in the world,” Cheng said. “I want to have it. They want the street. Why shouldn’t I want the street?”A security guard was stationed out front, so the couple couldn’t get in. Still, “we thought if the parcel is around here, we’re going to take a shot at it. Even if it’s something small and weird like a park, it’s still worth having in that neighborhood.”It could be a street fair, an expanded Halloween party or nothing at all, Cheng said. But “having a street like Presidio Terrace opens up whole worlds of possibilities that really render the idea of just making money to be a bit prosaic.”
So if this enterprising, young couple came to you for advice, would you tell them it was a good decision to buy a private street for back taxes? What do you think the market value is?
"But Michael Cheng and Tina Lam insist they are the victims of class warfare, a striving middle class couple vilified by the rarefied because they are outsiders — from the sprawling flatlands of San Jose, no less.
“They just didn’t see us as worthy of being part of that neighborhood,” said Cheng, 40, a Taiwanese immigrant who grew up selling toys and trinkets at the San Jose Flea Market with his father. It’s as though they were saying, “Oh, you guys are from the South Bay. You’re not from the most prestigious neighborhood in San Francisco, so we don’t want you here.”
It was the second time that the Presidio Terrace homeowners association failed to pay taxes on the parcel over the decades. This time, its members explained that they had changed accountants but the tax bill was being sent to an old address. As for the couple, although they didn’t want to sell, they said they would for $1 million, then refused a $200,000 offer.
After the board meeting this week, Supervisor Mark Farrell called the couple “out-of-town speculators … attempting to extort San Francisco residents that I represent into a quick $1 million payday.”
Not so, say Cheng and Lam, who insist they are still reeling from the maelstrom of international attention — and feel they have been unfairly demonized.“It’s just pride of ownership for me, and pretty much having the most exclusive and now most famous street in the world,” Cheng said. “I want to have it. They want the street. Why shouldn’t I want the street?”A security guard was stationed out front, so the couple couldn’t get in. Still, “we thought if the parcel is around here, we’re going to take a shot at it. Even if it’s something small and weird like a park, it’s still worth having in that neighborhood.”It could be a street fair, an expanded Halloween party or nothing at all, Cheng said. But “having a street like Presidio Terrace opens up whole worlds of possibilities that really render the idea of just making money to be a bit prosaic.”
So if this enterprising, young couple came to you for advice, would you tell them it was a good decision to buy a private street for back taxes? What do you think the market value is?
The Bob
Senior Member
- Joined
- Jan 20, 2002
- Professional Status
- Certified Residential Appraiser
- State
- Virginia
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